House of Hsueh Clutches: Great Accessories, Great Gifts

One thing that many brides are thinking about is what to get their bridesmaids as a thank you gift. For me, the choice was pretty easy. The first thing I thought of were House of Hsueh bags. Hand-made by Toronto-based designer, Benita Hsueh, they are very versatile and can be used as small purses or as make-up bags. They come in different styles - clutches (two sizes) and circle bags with handles and are available in many different styles. In addition to bags, House of Hsueh has also produced jewellery, such as earrings and brooches. All pieces are as enviromentally conscious and yes, unique.

The bags are currently available for sale at stores such as The Fashion District, Distill Gallery and With Love Gifts. Bags are also available for custom order. Price, on average, is around $40-50.

This was also posted in Prospere Magazine

OMG! It's WEDDING WEEK!!!

In less than a week, I'll be married!  Yes, that's right.  My wedding is THIS SATURDAY.  Everything is pretty much done.  I just have to chill for the next few days and, of course, pray for good weather!

I'll post pictures soon.

C

It's coming up!!!!

So my dress has been picked up (nope, no pics until AFTER the ceremony), the cake and flower deposits paid and things are pretty much set to go. Just a little over 2 weeks until the BIG DAY!  One little frustration I have is that we still don't have an official DJ assignment.  I have spoken with the DJ company and they have a rough idea of who they're going to assign to us, but I'll have to bug them again this week to see if there are any updates.  We also need to confirm our table arrangements with the venue (will send them an email later this week/early next).  Geez, lots to do!

Groom's Procession!!

So we are not going to have a conventional procession. We are going to be mixing up some traditions from both sides and then adding some personal touches. Most likely, my fiance will be walked down the aisle by his parents to Edward Elgar's Salut D'Amour:



The bridal party, starting with the Best Man and ending with the Flower Girl will walk to Bach's Arioso:



And my parents will walk me down to:



What do you think??

The Registry

There are both good and bad points about the registry our registry.  The good?  It allows for international billing addresses - both my fiance and I have tons of guests from outside Canada (US-based stores with Canadian locations don't allow for billing addresses outside Canada, so registring at places like Williams-Sonoma, Crate and Barrel or Bed, Bath and Beyond were out for us.  If Americans wanted to make purchases, they'd have to call in).   The bad?  There are sooooo many.  The first is that you don't get to see what the product is.  When you type in our names, you just get a list.  You then click on a button next to the product and type in the number you want to purchase.  There are NO pictures.  Does the store not realize that it's 2010?  Still, though, it's the biggest registry in Canada.  I don't get why they don't make any improvements.  Surely, people have complained!  The interface is seriously from like 1992 or something.  I realize that they don't have e-commerce, but STILL! 

Another issue is how they don't always notify you that something has been purchased.  I spoke with the store, and they said that this usually means that someone bought it at the store and took it home.  Not true.  When I went to the store to pick up some of the gifts (another problem - most other stores will SEND the gift to your house.  Not this place - you HAVE TO PICK UP!!  Totally WTF, no?), a rep said that they were purchased online.  So why wasn't I getting any e-mails?  I only found out who gave me the gift from a handwritten list at the store.  Again, WTF??!!

This store, a NATIONAL CHAIN, really needs to step up and enter the 21st century.  They have good products, just not a good website. 

Less than SEVEN WEEKS!!!

It's getting close!  Less than two months!  We've finally decided on the music:

Bridesmaids' Procession: J.S. Bach's Arioso



Bride's procession: Andre Campra's Rigaudon



Recession: W.A. Mozart's Eine Klein Nachtmusik - Allegro

Second Dress or Not?

I'm seriously debating whether to get a second dress to wear at the reception (after the first dance and all).  I hadn't originally planned on changing - it's tradition in modern Chinese weddings for the bride to have up to five dresses - but the more I think about it, the more I think that I should have a party dress for dancing later on in the evening, something easier to move around in.  There are plenty of affordable white dresses on J.Crew's website...

What do you think?